TWO Italian sisters have returned a diary in which Sir Paul McCartney wrote about the Beatles' split in 1970.

The diary had been stolen from Sir Paul's London home in the 1980s, said spokesman Geoff Baker. It was returned on Monday in Rome, where the ex-Beatle played two concerts over the weekend.

"Naughty girls," one of the two sisters, Paola De Fazi, quoted Sir Paul as saying after recovering the diary.

The diary contains drawings and personal notes, including scheduled meetings with the press, anniversaries and appointments with other members of the Beatles and with the group's producer.

In one page, dated March 12, 1970, Sir Paul drew two hearts and wrote "Happy Anniversary," a note dedicated to his late wife, Linda. In another one, dated April 10, he wrote: "Paul leaves Beatles."

The sisters, now in their mid-30s, said they stole the diary during a trip to London in 1980, when they went to see Sir Paul's house. "There was some restructuring work going on, and the gate was open," Francesca De Fazi recalled. "We mustered up our courage and went inside.

"There was a lot of stuff there: film reels, clips. We took the diary, a pair of boots and some music sheets and then ran away," she said. When the ex-Beatle went to Rome, the sisters decided to give the diary back.